Foreign anti-drone technology enters India as armed forces seek kinetic interceptors: Report
New Delhi, Aug 31
US-origin counter drone technology is entering India's defence manufacturing ecosystem at a time when the armed forces are developing requirements for systems capable of physically intercepting hostile unmanned aerial vehicles, a report has said.
As per analysis by The Sunday Guardian, US-based Powerus has granted Paras Defence & Space Technologies exclusive rights to manufacture and commercialise its Guardian interceptor family in India under an agreement disclosed in the company's filings with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
The agreement -- executed through Powerus subsidiary Tandem Defence LLC -- gives Paras exclusive rights to manufacture and commercialise Guardian interceptor products in India in return for a licence fee and a share of net profits from domestic sales, it said.
However, the arrangement does not imply that the Guardian interceptor has been selected by the Indian military. Any induction into service would still be subject to the government's standard evaluation and procurement processes.
The significance of the agreement lies in its timing, when the Indian military is separately developing requirements for high-speed kinetic systems to counter drones.
In February, the Indian Army issued a request for information (RFI) for up to 45 drone interception systems and 50 drone catcher systems for deployment across plains, deserts and high-altitude areas, according to the report.
The system is required to counter low-radar-cross-section drones through kinetic means, including direct impact or proximity detonation, it said.
The Army also issued a GeM tender earlier this month for the development of an AI-enabled high-speed interceptor UAV for counter-drone operations, while the Indian Air Force has sought indigenous solutions capable of detecting, tracking and neutralising hostile drones.
"Powerus describes Guardian-1 and the upgraded Guardian-2 as low-cost, high-speed counterdrone interceptor platforms designed to defeat hostile unmanned aerial threats at scale," according to the report.
The company has said the technology originated through a partnership formed to commercialise autonomous defence technologies developed in Ukraine and owned by G1 Exploration, it added.
For India, the immediate significance of the Paras-Powerus agreement is industrial rather than operational. The deal creates a pathway for local manufacturing and commercialisation of a foreign-origin counter-drone system as the Army and Air Force pursue scalable kinetic solutions to meet evolving drone threats.
— IANS
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